It’s at least partially due to the metaphysical law of karma, which is much more reliable these days than Metta World Peace. The K law states that a person’s fate is determined by previous actions.

In this case, the willy-nilly way Howard dumped Orlando assured that Jacque Vaughn would be a candidate for coach of the year and Mike D’Antoni would be asking Mike Brown for career advice.

Vaughn had never been a head coach anywhere, not even at the YMCA. In that sense he seemed like the perfect choice by general manager Rob Hennigan, who’d never hired a janitor before getting the Orlando gig.

The 30-year-old Hennigan was ripped for not getting more when he traded Howard. Maybe he knew Andrew Bynum knees were 139 years old. Maybe he saw the potential of J.J. Redick, Jameer Nelson, Arron Afflalo and Big Baby Davis.

You might recognize those names. Only fantasy geeks realize the Magic start 19-year-old Moe Harkless at forward and Andrew Nicholson is playing much better than a No. 19 pick is supposed to. The entire team has gotten less publicity than Nash’s left fibula.

That’s completely understandable since we’re talking no-names in a small market. The playoffs are still a year or two away, which is fine for Orlando but cause for blind panic in L.A.

Whoever dreamed the Lakers would be scrambling for the eighth seed? While Vaughn has molded a roster of rookies and complete strangers into a top-10 defense, the Lakers can barely stop the 3-17 Washington Wizards.

“His system doesn’t fit the talent the Lakers have,” Magic said. “You can’t run with this team. Where’s the runners?”

Well, Howard high-tailed it out of Orlando. He’s getting stats but has hardly brought any of the old Doomsday defensive presence.

People are speculating it’s due to lingering back issues, big-city pressure, Hack-a-Howard or longing for Brooklyn. I’ll go with all of the above, with the big K.

Rev. Jesse Jackson visited the Lakers before last Thursday’s game at Madison Square Garden. He stopped by Howard’s locker for a chat but apparently did not pray for Dwight’s free throw percentage.

It’s still just slightly higher than Greinke’s ERA. Meanwhile in Orlando, 22-year-old center Nikola Vucevic is making 73.1 percent of his free throws. He’s also averaging 9.9 points, 9.3 rebounds, and he has yet to say his teammates aren’t good enough to win a title.

That was Dwight’s schtick. He was right, but he went about things all wrong. Now he has much more talent around him and the same number of wins.

All is not bleak, however. Harlem Globetrotters management said it would be happy to schedule a game between the Lakers and Generals.

A disgusted Kobe could make like Meadowlark Lemon and dump the fake water on teammates. D’Antoni could try the hidden ball trick whenever Howard goes the free throw line.